Career and Education Opportunities for Real Estate Brokers in Seattle, Washington

Real estate broker career and educational opportunities abound in Seattle, Washington. Currently, 2,400 people work as real estate brokers in Washington. This is expected to grow 16% to about 2,780 people by 2016. This is better than the national trend for real estate brokers, which sees this job pool growing by about 8.6% over the next eight years. Real estate brokers generally operate real estate offices, or work for commercial real estate firms, overseeing real estate transactions.

Income for real estate brokers is about $35 hourly or $72,870 annually on average in Washington. Nationally, their income is about $27 hourly or $57,500 per year. Real estate brokers earn more than people working in the category of Real Estate generally in Washington and more than people in the Real Estate category nationally.

The Seattle area is home to sixty-five schools of higher education, including two within twenty-five miles of Seattle where you can get a degree as a real estate broker. The most common level of education for real estate brokers is some college courses. You can expect to spend a short time studying to be a real estate broker if you already have a high school diploma.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Real Estate Broker

Real Estate Broker video from the State of New Jersey Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development

In general, real estate brokers operate real estate offices, or work for commercial real estate firms, overseeing real estate transactions. They also other duties usually include selling real estate or renting properties and arranging loans.

Every day, real estate brokers are expected to be able to see details at a very fine level of focus. They need to articulate ideas and problems. It is also important that they listen to and understand others in meetings.

It is important for real estate brokers to sell, for a fee, real estate owned by others. They are often called upon to maintain awareness of current income tax regulations, local zoning, building and tax laws, and growth possibilities of the area where a property is located. They also compare a property with similar properties that have recently sold, in order to establish its competitive market price. They are sometimes expected to generate records of properties for sale, their locations and descriptions, and available financing options, using computers. Somewhat less frequently, real estate brokers are also expected to oversee and operate real estate offices, handling associated business details.

Real estate brokers sometimes are asked to obtain agreements from property owners to place properties for sale with real estate firms. and check work completed by loan officers and other professionals to insure that it is performed properly. And finally, they sometimes have to manage financing of property purchases.

Like many other jobs, real estate brokers must have exceptional integrity and be thorough and dependable.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Real Estate Broker Training

Seattle Community College-North Campus - Seattle, WA

Seattle Community College-North Campus, 9600 College Way North, Seattle, WA 98103-3599. Seattle Community College-North Campus is a medium sized college located in Seattle, Washington. It is a public school with primarily 2-year programs and has 6,159 students. Seattle Community College-North Campus has a less than one year and an associate's degree program in Real Estate which graduated twenty-seven and eight students respectively in 2008.

Bellevue College - Bellevue, WA

Bellevue College, 3000 Landerholm Cir SE, Bellevue, WA 98007-6484. Bellevue College is a large college located in Bellevue, Washington. It is a public school with primarily 4-year or above programs and has 11,748 students. Bellevue College has a less than one year and an associate's degree program in Real Estate which graduated nine and four students respectively in 2008.

CERTIFICATIONS

Global Mobility Specialist:
The purpose of Worldwide ERC's Certified Relocation Professional certification is to encourage members working in specific aspects of employee relocation to gain extensive and useful knowledge of all aspects of employee relocation.

Certified Relocation Professional:
The purpose of Worldwide ERC Certified Relocation Professional program is to encourage members working in specific aspects of employee relocation to gain extensive and useful knowledge of all aspects of employee relocation.

LOCATION INFORMATION: Seattle, Washington

Seattle, Washington photo by Dschwen

Seattle is located in King County, Washington. It has a population of over 598,541, which has grown by 6.2% in the past ten years. The cost of living index in Seattle, 126, is far greater than the national average. New single-family homes in Seattle are valued at $206,700 on average, which is well below the state average. In 2008, five hundred ninety-five new homes were built in Seattle, down from seven hundred seventy-five the previous year.

The three big industries for women in Seattle are health care, professional, scientific, and technical services, and educational services. For men, it is professional, scientific, and technical services, construction, and educational services. The average commute to work is about 25 minutes. More than 47.2% of Seattle residents have a bachelor's degree, which is higher than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 17.3%, is higher than the state average.

The unemployment rate in Seattle is 7.8%, which is less than Washington's average of 8.7%.

The percentage of Seattle residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 37.3%, is less than the national average but more than the state average. The largest religious groups are the Catholic Church, the LDS (Mormon) Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Seattle is home to the Berth 5 and the Akli Point Lighthouse as well as Lincoln Park and Myrtle Edwards Park. Shopping centers in the area include Lake City Shopping Center, Westwood Village Shopping Center and Oak Tree Village Shopping Center. Visitors to Seattle can choose from A-1 Motel, Arlington Suites and Marriott Sea-Tac Airport for temporary stays in the area.